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Mapping Stories, New Year – New Writing & Nurture Your Inner Writer with Wendy Orr, Vicki Griffin and Karen Tyrrell.
Hello Readers,
We have some great blogs for you this morning. If you have not had the chance to check them out on Blue Dingo Network here they are. Thank you to Wendy Orr, Vicki Griffin and Karen Tyrrell for these great tips and advice for our writing community.
Last chance reminder for anyone wishing to contribute to the eMagazine. Contact me ASAP – Our new email is bluedingopress@bigpond.com. Last minute contributions and advertisements must be in by the 20th (that is 2 days folks).
The Blue Dingo Team.
Mapping Stories
The usual meaning of story mapping is charting the shape of your story: how the smaller chapter peaks and cliff hangers build up to the great climax. Personally, that’s not something I can do before the first draft is done, and even then it’s more something I’m aware of than a formal, written chart.
What I mean is literally drawing maps for each story. Anyone who knows me and my sense of direction might find this amusing – but actually it’s even more important if you don’t have a great natural directional sense. Even if you do, it’s still easy to forget exactly how you first imagined everything fitting together.
The map I created of Nim’s island was up on my wall the whole time I worked on the book, and later sent to Kerry Millard, the illustrator, to be prettied up for publication. (I love the antique puffy-faced winds she added! The “not to scale” was my husband’s comment, which Kerry thought was so funny she added it too.
For Raven’s Mountain (Coming out in Canada next month as Facing the Mountain) I had large scale maps of National Parks in British Columbia, then my own drawings of the mountain, her path down it, the camp site… if you’ve got a character out in the wild, you need to know which way the sun comes up over the lake, and remember that it’s not going to set in the same place.
Today I’m drawing a temple-palace – I’m not quite sure yet which it’ll be called, though I have a feeling that I’ll know when I work out the drawing. It’ll take a while – drawing is another of my not-so-gifted gifts – but I learn a lot about what I need to know as I do it. I get a better feeling of the materials; I know the colour of the stone now, and it’s not what I thought it would be. It’s all part of digging yourself into the character and the story.
I can’t share these now, but here’s one I made for Raven’s mountain: a salt dough conception of the peak, to see if my idea of how it could have eroded would work.
It doesn’t have to be just for fantasy kingdoms or eroded mountains: if you’re not sure of some of the logic in your story, or your character isn’t coming to life, pick up a pencil and start doodling ideas about their home, their street, their town. If you can picture their kitchen, their bedroom and garden, you’ll know a lot more about them. You’ll probably never use those details, but knowing them will give your character greater depth, and a better chance of coming to life on the page.
New Year New writings
Well another year has gone by and time to start fresh. New beginnings and with that comes new writings. 2012 will be the year I finish all projects, ( some have been laying idle for years) re-read half finished manuscripts and be ruthless with the editing process. Then fine tune the text ready to send off to market.
Most importantly send off lots of manuscripts off and wait for feedback (if any) enter writing competitions and finally have ‘My mob at Christmas’ published by Black Ink press. When I am tired of writing I find it always helps to read, the more I read the more I write and vice-a-versa. Another strategy I use is to give my MSS to a friend to read who can be honest without thinking they may ‘hurt my feelings!’ Writers are a tough bunch we get rejected every day but continue on with our craft and loving every minute of it! Happy new Year fellow writers!
How to Nurture the Writer Within in 2012
How do we start 2012 with pure Creative Writing energy?
Enthused, motivated and Refreshed? … Ready to create stories that jump off the page?
How do we keep the creative channels forever flowing?
Cuddle up with our muse?… Prevent writers burn out?… And maybe dissolve writers block?
Here’s the Answer! … READ MORE! http://karentyrrell.com/?p=2881
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